Bye bye Facebook
Roughly a month ago, I deleted Facebook off my phone. I was checking the site about 10 times a day if not more often. It was a distraction and a bit of a nervous habit. I was also finding it made me anxious. To be honest, a bit reminiscent of when I used to smoke. People post pictures that make them feel better about themselves yet socially isolate other people who live in their community. I remember once seeing a neighbor's post of a BBQ that made me feel incredibly excluded. All under the guise of "sharing", I tend to think of it as marketing one's life. I am trying to keep mine a little bit more authentic.
I also find people use Facebook to dump out their toxic vitriol. Some use it as a forum to manipulate other people's perceptions. Quite frankly, if you don't like yourself you can recreate yourself via social media. This is Facebook at a personal level. I'm not even touching the political manipulation, abuse of personal information or lack of ethics the company has been attacked for lately. You know, the whole concept of interfering with the democratic process of nations. Why would we worry about that when we can post a picture of the sunset?
The first couple of days without the app readily available to access were hard. I found myself automatically going to my phone to take a peek at my wall. Eventually that stopped. To be honest I don't really care enough about my "friends" to the extent that I have to look at their dinner or what hotel they stayed at on their vacation. I think it feeds a strange societal narcissism and contributes to social isolation. Quite frankly, I'd rather my friend or family member told me what they were up to when we spend time together. For now I'm out. I am entitled to change my mind but I keep forgetting about Facebook. I have found other distractions.
Roughly a month ago, I deleted Facebook off my phone. I was checking the site about 10 times a day if not more often. It was a distraction and a bit of a nervous habit. I was also finding it made me anxious. To be honest, a bit reminiscent of when I used to smoke. People post pictures that make them feel better about themselves yet socially isolate other people who live in their community. I remember once seeing a neighbor's post of a BBQ that made me feel incredibly excluded. All under the guise of "sharing", I tend to think of it as marketing one's life. I am trying to keep mine a little bit more authentic.
I also find people use Facebook to dump out their toxic vitriol. Some use it as a forum to manipulate other people's perceptions. Quite frankly, if you don't like yourself you can recreate yourself via social media. This is Facebook at a personal level. I'm not even touching the political manipulation, abuse of personal information or lack of ethics the company has been attacked for lately. You know, the whole concept of interfering with the democratic process of nations. Why would we worry about that when we can post a picture of the sunset?
The first couple of days without the app readily available to access were hard. I found myself automatically going to my phone to take a peek at my wall. Eventually that stopped. To be honest I don't really care enough about my "friends" to the extent that I have to look at their dinner or what hotel they stayed at on their vacation. I think it feeds a strange societal narcissism and contributes to social isolation. Quite frankly, I'd rather my friend or family member told me what they were up to when we spend time together. For now I'm out. I am entitled to change my mind but I keep forgetting about Facebook. I have found other distractions.
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